(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Take a walk through the courtyard at Expo 2020 Dubai's House of Volunteers and you'll see this lady's smiling face beaming down on you.
Instantly recognisable by her nun veil, Sister Terry moved from the Philippines to the UAE in 2014. She works as the vice-principal at St Mary's Catholic School in Muhaisnah, but her work as a nun goes beyond the nine-to-five routine.
"I live my life to give back and serve my community," she told Khaleej Times.
When the opportunity arose a few years ago to become a volunteer for Expo 2020 Dubai, she immediately applied. Today, Sister Terry is an official ambassador for the Expo and she is one of the faces of the volunteer programme.
"When I applied, the House of Volunteers building wasn't even complete. Today, a huge image of my face adorns a wall of the building." Volunteerism is part and parcel of Sister Terry's duty as a nun. She said she wants to serve people because she loves them and "sharing your time, not just for yourself but for others, is part of charity and our duty to God".
"I worked in a school in the US some years back and I volunteered with the youth. During the papal visit in the Philippines years ago, I was one of the volunteers looking after the youth, training them to welcome the pope, too. Anywhere I live I feel compelled to volunteer."
During her duties so far as a Dubai Expo 2020 volunteer, Sister Terry has helped orientate people in their visit to the Expo site. She has welcomed hopeful new recruits to the House of Volunteers for interviews and orientation sessions, and what she calls "most exciting of all", is the fact that she appears in the official Expo 2020 Dubai House of Volunteers welcome video.
"Did you see it? I appear at the end. 'This is for everyone', that was my line. The video is about welcoming people to the Expo and I'm blessed to be one of those friendly faces. I feel so proud that I belong to part of the Emirati culture now. I feel like I am one of them and I feel a kind of family spirit when I'm with the group. The House of Volunteers is like my second home."
Excited to open a dialogue with people from all walks of life, Sister Terry dedicates most weekends to her volunteering duties. And she actually helped facilitate an external application process for House of Volunteers' hopefuls.
Giving that the house is positioned at the Expo site, making it difficult for some people to travel to for interviews, she suggested setting up outside platforms where people could register their interest in joining the 'Expo family'.
"I was the one who suggested that we should have a volunteers platform at schools to encourage others to volunteer, especially young students. Now, every school in Dubai can open a volunteer corner and offer services for those who wish to join but can't get to ?the volunteer house."
Kelly Clarke Originally from the UK, Kelly Clarke joined Khaleej Times in November 2012. She has a keen interest in humanitarian issues and took over as the dedicated Education Reporter in August 2016. In her spare time she loves to travel off the beaten track, and often write about her quirky experiences of pastures new. Kelly received her BA Honours in Journalism from Middlesex University, UK in 2008. Before joining Khaleej Times she worked as a Supervising Editor for three Healthcare titles in London. @KellyAnn_Clarke
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